Is it possible to change your sociotype?

Is it possible to become another type, either through conscious effort, or just because of certain circumstances? for example if you were surrounded by people of the opposing quadra, could you become your quasi-identical type? like an IEE becoming EIE..

please refer to jung's Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche for the answer.

Be careful what you refer to. It was Jung who said that types do change through the life. But I am referencing Jung's PT, so maybe we're not talking bout the same thing?

But then again, I'd say that sociotype is much, mcuh deeper than MBTI type. MBTI type is mostly a reflection of your current behaviour, outlooks on life etc. Sociotype includes many, many deep things. You won't suddenly change your +/- reinin. You will either notice absence or presence. You don't change that. The same goes for ratio/irratio, static/dynamic etc. There aren't such things in MBTI.

Be careful what you refer to. It was Jung who said that types do change through the life. But I am referencing Jung's PT, so maybe we're not talking bout the same thing?

But then again, I'd say that sociotype is much, mcuh deeper than MBTI type. MBTI type is mostly a reflection of your current behaviour, outlooks on life etc. Sociotype includes many, many deep things. You won't suddenly change your +/- reinin. You will either notice absence or presence. You don't change that. The same goes for ratio/irratio, static/dynamic etc. There aren't such things in MBTI.

reinin is bs

MBTI is supposed to be about the cognitive processing too but many people misinterpret it

MBTI is supposed to be about the cognitive processing too but many people misinterpret it

But Reinin is not BS. It helps to form a clear cognitive profile. Just read Gulenko's Cognitive article. Things like that are what I'm looking for in typology.
(ok some could be{ like, say, aristo/demo...nobody was able to quite decipher that one }. But others are very helpful{ st/dyn, +/-, left/right, constr/emote .}

And yes, I like Jung's version of MBTI very much. I also happen to think that if you mixed socionic ideas(P1 J1 P2 J2 instead of P1 J1 J2 P2) with his ideas(Pi Ji Pe Je) it'd have been nigh perfect

Apparently it is quite easy to do. Change three little letters and some people will respond to you differently than they did a day earlier. :/

I don't imagine that I will or even can change my base cognitive function. It is the way I have processed information my whole life. This is me and I am tired of fighting against my nature. I am never going to be a logical type (which probably would be my second choice as it seems easier when it comes to having ideas heard) and I am fine with that. I can exercise weaker functions but even that gets tiring after a while if it isn't serving a useful purpose and points to promising results in the long run.

To answer your question. In hopes of becoming more logical I surrounded myself with logical types for a long time. I guess I hoped I would be heard and they would embrace my ideas or some of their logic would rub off. It did but not enough to make an impact on my type.

To answer your question. In hopes of becoming more logical I surrounded myself with logical types for a long time. I guess I hoped I would be heard and they would embrace my ideas or some of their logic would rub off. It did but not enough to make an impact on my type.

Be careful what you refer to. It was Jung who said that types do change through the life. But I am referencing Jung's PT, so maybe we're not talking bout the same thing?

But then again, I'd say that sociotype is much, mcuh deeper than MBTI type. MBTI type is mostly a reflection of your current behaviour, outlooks on life etc. Sociotype includes many, many deep things. You won't suddenly change your +/- reinin. You will either notice absence or presence. You don't change that. The same goes for ratio/irratio, static/dynamic etc. There aren't such things in MBTI.

i never said type doesn't change. i said, for the answer, refer to <insert book name> by <insert author>.

I think you have to look at yourself when you are/were 18 or something. The type never changes but we get masks over time. A wannabe LSE here.

Imagine if you were somewhere between age 10 and 14 for the clearest result imo. Too bad that so much happened since then that I barely remember myself(yet, funny enough, I remember most everyone else...).

I think you have to look at yourself when you are/were 18 or something. The type never changes but we get masks over time. A wannabe LSE here.

Hmm, my logical envy seems more directed to ILI types. I would not give up Ni to be logical base so the logical choice for that is ILI.

Going by stories of my childhood I have used Ni by default since I was a toddler. I also used a lot of Fe, when it was necessary, to strengthen my connection to others and fit in more. Without Fe I am not sure if I would have ever formed any friendships at all because I would have been more timid and stayed locked in my own reality that existed independent of others. I just wanted to be left alone for most of my early childhood.

I didn't even want to go outside and play with other children and had to be forced to do so most of the time. I did have fun, usually. once I was forced as long as I could stop and come inside when I wanted. Being forced into social situations upset and made me angry but I finally decided to give everyone what they wanted and then they didn't like it. They would have prefered to have me back the way I was. My personality has grown over the years and there have been many changes. The way I naturally process information has not. When forced to go outside my natural processes it stresses my system and I get cranky/frustrated, stubborn or rebellious.

i personally think type shifting is possible to some extent. what extent, and for how long, and if it matters, and why... i don't know. maybe it's just my own warped view, but i think lead and role are fairly fluent. changing from EII to SLE or something--that i might see as maybe too much of a change.

also as a proof: if you have typed a lot of people you start to notice similarities in their face appearances, it's called VI. So if you would change type you would also change physically, which is impossible.

...Lol. A lot. I have little cousins and I knew their type, some right off the bat, others took time for me to realize (the more people you type, the better, because you have a reference to refer back to). Or baby pictures of people I know, they looked their type.

But Reinin is not BS. It helps to form a clear cognitive profile. Just read Gulenko's Cognitive article. Things like that are what I'm looking for in typology.
(ok some could be{ like, say, aristo/demo...nobody was able to quite decipher that one }. But others are very helpful{ st/dyn, +/-, left/right, constr/emote .}

And yes, I like Jung's version of MBTI very much. I also happen to think that if you mixed socionic ideas(P1 J1 P2 J2 instead of P1 J1 J2 P2) with his ideas(Pi Ji Pe Je) it'd have been nigh perfect

Eh static/dynamic are ok but many other dichotomies just don't seem to align always as neatly as the theory claims. The cogstyles aren't bad but I have not seen enough proof for those either, tho' it works in the few examples I've analysed incl. myself.

As for type change, I don't think it'd be easy. Where's the reward for the brain in changing its ways of processing information? External circumstances can force you to adapt but that's not the same thing as operating in the optimal mode, which would be along your type if considering only the information processing within the framework of socionics.

My own experience, I temporarily went from LSI-Se to LSI-Ti subtype in a period of my life and I definitely prefer the former though I'm ok in both modes. That was not a full type change either, it was just emphasis shifting yet I notice the differences in terms of what's optimal for me.

@inumbra I find it hard to imagine to go to role function permanently to switch it into ego block, I'm curious why you feel that's possible, explain please if you can.

Hmm, my logical envy seems more directed to ILI types. I would not give up Ni to be logical base so the logical choice for that is ILI.

Going by stories of my childhood I have used Ni by default since I was a toddler. I also used a lot of Fe, when it was necessary, to strengthen my connection to others and fit in more. Without Fe I am not sure if I would have ever formed any friendships at all because I would have been more timid and stayed locked in my own reality that existed independent of others. I just wanted to be left alone for most of my early childhood.

I didn't even want to go outside and play with other children and had to be forced to do so most of the time. I did have fun, usually. once I was forced as long as I could stop and come inside when I wanted. Being forced into social situations upset and made me angry but I finally decided to give everyone what they wanted and then they didn't like it. They would have prefered to have me back the way I was. My personality has grown over the years and there have been many changes. The way I naturally process information has not. When forced to go outside my natural processes it stresses my system and I get cranky/frustrated, stubborn or rebellious.

I don't think you should take my LSE comment that seriously, that was just a joke.

Eh static/dynamic are ok but many other dichotomies just don't seem to align always as neatly as the theory claims. The cogstyles aren't bad but I have not seen enough proof for those either, tho' it works in the few examples I've analysed incl. myself.

They work on me as well. I can think in an algorithmic way, but it's not my natural way. My most natural way being looking from another perspective, on the other hand etc. That's the primary reason why I even came here. Why I will stay? ... I'm not into philosophy tyvm! Eh, right! I'm decidedly a holographic cognition, so you can count me as well for cog.styles.

You never really change type, but you may use other functions well enough to deviate from your mean. There will always be a tendency toward one type over the course of one's life. I think there is a certain fluidity to personality.

Socionic type is inborn, I can type newborn babies only by temperament because their physically features are fresh, but I can still type babies less than the age of 1 yrs.

yes regular psychology also states that temperament is something you get born with and can't change. Changing type would also often imply changing temperament, which is impossible hence type change is impossible.

yes regular psychology also states that temperament is something you get born with and can't change. Changing type would also often imply changing temperament, which is impossible hence type change is impossible.

I have no idea if any of this is true,, but I'm sure whatever is said in actual psychology has nothing to do with socionics temperament, BUT to do with altruistic temperament etc.

because of the incredibly warm reception from the shit-brigade (you and myst) i'm probably not going to do that.

thanks for deciding i'm going to give you shit and that myst and i will be in agreement on everything... ??? this is why i don't like talking to you usually about socionics. you use put downs. it's what caused me to get annoyed the first time we tried talking about socionics. i keep hoping you'll stop.

to elaborate further on my thoughts about type change. model A is that--a model. models are not matches to reality. i don't have boxes in my head for functions. models only try to approximate reality in their limited capacity.

They work on me as well. I can think in an algorithmic way, but it's not my natural way. My most natural way being looking from another perspective, on the other hand etc. That's the primary reason why I even came here. Why I will stay? ... I'm not into philosophy tyvm! Eh, right! I'm decidedly a holographic cognition, so you can count me as well for cog.styles.

When I said gamma SF for you I didn't realize yet that you actually switched to self typing of ESI

Originally Posted by inumbra

well, i find myself floating between my leading and role anyway. perhaps we are not all born for model A.

Sure. Ni and Si, I guess?

Originally Posted by Enoch

I think there is a great way to explain the possibility for type change--

Self knowledge, or learning about oneself, can make you see what was there all along. A more complete self

I don't think self knowledge on its own will change deeply ingrained information processing aspects

When I said gamma SF for you I didn't realize yet that you actually switched to self typing of ESI

Why? Is there anything wrong? I happen to think that NiTe's are the best typists and I've been typed as an ESI by one. Besides the matter, if only I could self type myself beautifully like I did Palpatine. So I just go through Reinins + JCF and et voila! If only! But I don't see myself as clearly as I see my family or a guy on street or the awesome guy(Palpatine...what? The guy brought Order to WHOLE GALAXY! Besides the point...he devised a dream, fulfilled it and lived his dream { WOW! }. If only I had that gall...). Why can't I self type accurately? Is it normal?

Sure. Ni and Si, I guess?

I don't think self knowledge on its own will change deeply ingrained information processing aspects

Is it possible to become another type, either through conscious effort, or just because of certain circumstances? for example if you were surrounded by people of the opposing quadra, could you become your quasi-identical type? like an IEE becoming EIE..

there's a Prokofiev/Kamenev article which proposes that people can wear "masks" of another type different from their own. it discusses the idea that people can temporarily act like another type (even of an opposing quadra, like you suggest), or wear a "mask" for a long time (but this basically amounts to suppression of one's "true" type, ultimately causing neuroses and internal conflict over the long term). of course, the assumption of this article is that people have a "true" type that never really changes.

i tend to think that a "permanent" type change (not simply wearing a "mask") may come from some kind of extreme trauma that results in rewiring of the brain. you've probably heard of those cases when people suffer extensive brain damage, survive it, but come back as an entirely different person after their brain rewires itself to a functioning state. it's not hard to imagine that these people might come back as entirely different types than they were before.

extreme trauma could include not only physical, but emotional damage that may change the brain and personality. i wonder if people who have dissociations, i.e. "multiple personalities" are experiencing type change when they switch identities. the affect of trauma on personality is also mentioned by Carl Jung in the article above, on how children might adopt a different type due to "strong and abnormal" parental influence:

"Under abnormal conditions, that is, where there is extremely strong and abnormal influence from their mothers, children can have violence done to their individual predispositions (relative to normal influence), which perhaps would choose another type, if not prevented by these abnormal external conditions."